Stefano Pilati’s fourth Yves Saint Laurent  Manifesto is democratizing high fashion, uniting style and technology to infiltrate the popular consciousness in a new approach to advertising. The S/S 2009 Manifesto, photographed by Inez Van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin and featuring Claudia Schiffer will be uploaded and distributed on charming heart shaped USB keys on the streets of Paris, New York, London, Milan, Tokyo and Hong Kong on the 14th of February.  Over half a million copies of the  twenty page Manifesto, accompanied by behind the scenes footage, will be disseminated this way, along with a cotton tote bag designed by Pilati to the first 2,000 passers by in each city.

Communicating with a whole new demographic for the first time, and liberated from the elitist pages of a glossy magazine (although a print promotion will also be released at the same time), the campaign is an attempt at an egalitarian approach to luxury fashion. Following on from the philosophy behind the previous four Manifestos, Pilati is reaching out to the public, playing on the timelessness of seasonal collectors items to draw interest to the unusual format of the Manifesto. The Manifesto itself is interactive, allowing users to play with removable stickers and centerfold poster, ushering in a new era of accessibility and familiarity between the consumer and the sumptuous fashion house.

The Manifesto USB and tote will be distributed in London from 11am on the 14th February at Bond Street, Knightsbridge, High Street Kensington and Covent Garden. The Manifesto will also debut exclusively on ysl.com on the same day.

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